


a heavy leaf to turn

by PuriPuki



Category: Fire Emblem: Kakusei | Fire Emblem: Awakening
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Road Trip, Bad Parenting, Canonical Child Abuse, Child Abuse, I don't understand how the law works, Multi, Twin Robins
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-08
Updated: 2018-01-08
Packaged: 2019-03-01 19:11:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,090
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13301382
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PuriPuki/pseuds/PuriPuki
Summary: As Robin and Reflet are faced with the release of their father from prison, Chrom finds himself on the brink of working a 9-5 for his father, and Gaius is just along for the ride when Chrom's path crosses with the twins, leading them on a lengthy road trip to something they hope can fix the broken homes they rose from.(a very self indulgent road trip au, which is inspired by a now abandoned work that i wrote four chapters of when i was like 15)





	1. Chapter 1

Moira Lefaye married on a sweltering July day, to a kind man with a strange name and stranger past. She is veiled far too much for her mother’s liking, but Moira is in love. While it’s new and only budding, Moira loves Validar wholly and is more than willing to convert to Islam (despite not having any particular conviction in regards to religion) if it means being with her beloved. Moira Lefaye dies that day, and is reborn Moira Al-Amin.

The cake is sweet and delicate, the broken bread is soft on the inside, and the meat is fresh. An imam gives his blessings, and there is no sweet wine drunk - everything is airy and light and is more than joyful without the influence of alcohol.

_(When she converts, Moira is hesitant - her mother’s Catholicism had never quite resonated with her, too oppressive and demanding. The shift to regular prayer is hard to accommodate at first, but it becomes welcomed routine, day in and day out, five instances each day where she bows her head and prays. It’s slow, but with time, Moira is more comfortable under her veil than she ever was in the cathedrals)_

Moira’s mother in law takes out an ad in the paper, to announce the union, as tradition goes. She can’t find it in herself to be angry with her, because she’s on top of the world and public image be damned.

The next November, Moira gives birth to a son. They call him Aali and he is perfect.

Aali smiles and gurgles at them from the start, and he rarely cries out at night. Validar murmurs things to him in Arabic, and though Moira doesn’t know what’s being said, she can only assume it’s a comforting lullabye. Her in-laws, which have never quite gotten along with her parents, abandon any complaints they have about their whiteness and disrespect to tradition when they find their daughter in law has given them a grandson.

Aali is coddled and loved and adored, given the utmost attention at family gatherings. Moira is content - Aali is happy and healthy, Validar is kind and generous and more than willing to work so she can tend to her first child, and so she is secure in love and wealth.

This security does not last.

Four years later, when Moira carries the twins, Aali tells her about a dream he had. A fairy had came to change him and make him a girl. Aali tells her how he cried when he woke up and was still a boy.

Moira has no problem with this, but her husband seems to.

“No son of mine will wear that.” “No dolls” “You will not play with your mother’s makeup”. By the time Aali is five, he has had three sprains and two breaks. Kids, Moira tells her mother, always getting into trouble.

That dream marks the beginning of the nightmare.

She goes to the hospital twice in the duration of her pregnancy for emergencies unrelated to the gestation of her children. A broken arm that still aches when she labors, and a sprained wrist that still twinges when she writes. Accidents, she assures the nurses, under the cold hand of her husband.

On the eve of the summer solstice, Robin and Reflet Al-Amin are born. She is graced with the honor of naming the twins. For their sake, Moira prays they are what her husband wants.

The twins grow up faster than they should have. Aali takes the brunt of the beatings for them. And Moira takes the brunt of the beatings for Aali. Moira doesn’t remember when her husband was kind and loving. He blames her for Aali’s ‘affliction’, tells her she has a sour womb. Aali tells his mother, once, that he’s sorry for being like he is. Moira tells him to never apologize for that ever again, because “it isn’t your fault. It’s your father’s.”

When the twins are 3, Reflet is hit in the head so hard they have to take him to the ER. Moira sobs, holding his hand and trying to soothe her daughters (Aali whispered to his mother once, that he’d like to be a girl when he got bigger. Moira told him he could definitely be a girl when he was bigger.). A social worker comes by the hospital room, and reluctantly believes Moira’s explanation for the bruises and scars littering her son’s body.

“Children are reckless and get bumps sometimes. He was chasing his older brother and tripped.”

“Play fighting with his brother”

“Slipped on the floor while I was mopping”

“Ran into the side of the table”

Moira was very good at telling lies by the time the twins were five. Aali was nine, then, and the school had yet to take notice of the bruises. His are treated, bandaged and laced with disinfectants. The twins are given the same treatment, with Disney bandaids and kisses on the booboo. Moira’s bruises are left to fester, because there’s only so many bandages to go around, and she’d sooner die than let her children fall ill due to a lack of treatment.

When Robin is eight, in the same first grade class as her brother with the same teacher who taught Aali, she writes a six sentence story about her family, accompanied by a crude drawing in crayon. It was homework. _(I live with my mommy, papa, and big brothers. Reffie is only three minutes older than me. Papa is mean to us and he hurts mommy. He hurts us too but mommy kisses us better. Mommy doesn’t like Papa. I don’t like him either.)_ The next day, Moira is called into the school and finds herself meeting with both the twins’ teacher and Aali’s, police officers, and a social worker.

She weeps when Ms. Abernathy shows her Robin’s assignment, and rolls her sleeves up to show them the bruises, an array of horrid greens and dark purples and blues. The teachers pull the children from class, the police leave to find her husband, and Aali, whose known this life the longest, breaks out into the biggest smile she’s ever seen when Moira tells them that their father is never coming home again.

Validar Al-Amin is arrested on September 8th, under the charges of child endangerment, child neglect and abuse, and a domestic violence felony. Moira doesn’t pretend to know what the risk of trial would do to her children, but she does know that the court will have no problem putting her husband away.

That night, the Lefayes meet their youngest grandchildren for the first time, and Moira knows peace for the first time in eight years. The children sleep on an inflatable bed and Moira stays awake the whole night, watching over them - even though there’s no chance of him bursting through the door to instill punishment for a minor infraction, she stays awake to protect them just in case. They’re safe, her mother tells her, they have a TRO and everything - he’s even being held without bail.

The trial is brutal.

Even though they are children, the defense lawyers don’t go easy. They all leave the stand crying, doing all they can to avoid their father’s gaze. The bikers help, though, the sit in the front row and smile at the children. The lawyers are no less kind to Moira - questioning her motives, why she didn’t go to the police or a social worker or anyone, why she’s only now pressing charges, what else is she hiding, is she making it up for money and attention? Why does she still wear the veil, if her husband forced her to convert? Why?

Validar Al-Amin is sentenced to 10 years without parole, is administered 4 restraining orders to be permanently extended after the five year minimum, barring him from interacting with his soon to be ex wife and children. Moira received financial compensation from the courts, and is given sole custody of the children.

The restraining orders do not, however, apply to Validar’s family.

The Al-Amin family blames Moira for Validar’s imprisonment, blame her for the beatings - if only she had listened to her husband and been a good wife, things would have been fine. The Lefaye family, including Moira’s parents, move to Oregon to escape the harassment.

Ten years pass in Oregon without incident. Robin and Reflet advance through school without issue, and Aversa - the daughter Moira always had - moves on to college, where she undertakes pre-law and has already planned to be a prosecutor.

On October 11, Validar Al-Amin is released from prison and begins the hunt for his family.

  
✧✧✧

 

Five years prior to Moira Lefaye’s marriage to Validar Al-Amin, Angeline Lamarr is wed to Salvatore Lowell 3000 miles away, during a wave of frigid temperatures on the California coast.

Angie Lamarr’s wedding is not one of love, but one of political and economic security - her family’s status is dwindling, their company losing profits as the years drag on, and Angie is willing to be the sacrificial lamb - uniting Lamarr industries with the Lowell family’s political history, securing a steady stream of funding to further their enterprise.

Salvatore Lowell is not particularly in love with Angeline Lamarr, but supposes that an arranged marriage is far easier to manage than going out and finding love on his own. Besides, Angeline Lamarr is a beauty, delicate and fair and all the things his father taught him to look for in a woman.

There was a chance for love, between Angie and Sal, but it was not meant to be.

Their first daughter is born in December, three minutes before Christmas Eve. They name her Emmeryn, and she is kind and happy, and she is her mother’s daughter - the same blonde hair and gentle grey blue eyes. Salvatore does not care for children, but Angie finds solace in caring for her daughter. She does not work, because Salvatore finds it unbecoming, and so her daughter becomes her life.

When Emmeryn is four, her brother is born in a May heatwave and Salvatore is the fool who bestows him with a traditional family name - Cromwell, though they shorten it to Chrom (Angie finds this name silly, but it pleases her husband, so the name stays). Chrom is more his father’s son, inheriting his coloring, raven blue hair and striking eyes that Angie once thought she could love. As he grows, Chrom is a wild child and far more trouble than Emmeryn, and is unfortunately prone to breaking things.

If Angeline dislikes the way that Salvatore disciplines his children, she doesn’t say anything about it.

When Chrom is three and Emmeryn is 7, their baby sister is born during a snowstorm. The drive to the hospital is frantic, but the children entertain themselves while their parents yell back and forth. When she is born, she screams like the devil and they call her Lissa. Salvatore just wants to name her Lisa, but Angeline wants to give it a little flair. If her siblings are to be called Chrom and Emmeryn, she deserves a unique name too.

Salvatore is not home very often, and Angie is glad for this. She doesn’t like the way he yells, always loud and shattering, like a broken toy is the end of the Lowell legacy, like a clumsy child is a dumb one, like a shy child is a broken one.

  
When Lissa is three years old, Chrom is six and Emmeryn is ten, there is a fight. It entails screaming and a broken glass and shards embedded in skin. Emmeryn’s arm is broken, a violet bruise blooms on Chrom’s clavicle, and there’s a hand print shaped mark on Lissa’s cheek by the time the neighbors bother to call for help. Angeline is no better off than her children, but she defends her husband.

She will have no family to go to if she betrays him, if she lets the money line get cut off. The tears bubbling in her children’s eyes have to be ignored for now. She’s come too far to let something like this hurt her.

For three weeks, the children are sent to stay with a family friend, one with a son Emmeryn’s age - Freddy, Angie thinks, or maybe Ricky, she’s not sure - while Angeline and Salvatore are held and questioned regarding the fight, the bruises and breaks on their children, and how safe their home is.

The Lowell family has its connections. The children are returned home, and don’t leave again. Angeline is unable to bring herself to hold her daughter, or even look at her son.

And life goes on.

When Chrom turns ten, Salvatore starts grooming him to take over the family tradition - he teaches his son how to tell when people are lying, how to lie himself, how to speak in front of others without crying and most importantly, he teaches Chrom the values he must carry.

 _(Chrom isn’t sure he likes what his father is saying. His father tells him that people who were headscarves are bad, but he knows a girl in his class whose mom wears one, and she made snacks for her daughter to bring in for everyone on her birthday. But he nods_ anyways, _because if he doesn’t, he might end up with another bruise.)_

Despite what his father instructs him to do, Chrom finds a circle of friends both within and outside what is deemed acceptable. He’s close to Frederick, of course, and so is Emmeryn, and he’s found a friend in Virion and Sully and Maribelle too. He’s told to stay away from Ricken, because his family is going broke, and to stay away from Sumia, because her mother doesn’t like his father, but he eats lunch with them anyways.

Once he’s in middle school, he stops private education - Angeline insists that the children experience public school like she did, so they can know the world they live in. Salvatore isn’t fond of it, but he allows it anyways. In public school, he meets Stahl and Kellam and Miriel. Stahl is nice to him and always gives part of his lunch to Kellam, and tells really awful jokes that always make him laugh. Kellam is more shy, but he’s a comforting friend - from what he understands, Kellam’s parents are sort of like his father. Chrom starts sharing his lunch with Kellam after he finds out that his parents ‘forget’ to give him lunch money. Miriel is a little different, she reads a lot and has dorky coke bottle glasses, but she stands up for other people and was kind to Lissa when they met.

As he grows, Chrom finds out what his father really does to make so much money. He doesn’t like what he finds. Salvatore Lowell is a R-Senator, seemingly always running for reelection, campaigning on hate and taking advantage of fear. He gets campaign donations from across the state, and Chrom doesn’t bother to look into who’s feeding his father the money.

When he reaches 15, he begins to intern for his father, unwillingly. When he is 17, his application is sent to numerous colleges, almost all of them chosen by his father - political science and law colleges, because Emmeryn, already a Poli Sci and Econ major, can’t possibly take over for Salvatore. His 18th birthday comes too quickly, when he begins to work for Salvatore in an official capacity.

In a moment of foolish teenage melodrama, Chrom takes a gap year between highschool and college, taking off in the middle of the night to go on a road trip, see the sights the country has to offer. He buys a second hand truck from a shady dealership he doesn’t care to get the name of, packs his bags, and goes. He tells his sisters and mother, leaving a note for his father, knowing that it won’t be taken lightly.

But, it’s only a matter of time before Salvatore tracks him down and forces him to return home.


	2. Chapter 2

The day that Robin and Reflet’s world ended began rather normally, all things considered. The day began with a chorus of alarms, starting at 3:30 am, rousing Moira from sleep. She dressed, checked that all three of her children were still in their rooms (even though they’re all young adults, old habits die hard), and began the drive to the hospital, singing along to the only music on so early in the morning. Hours later, a second round of alarms went off, yanking Robin from sleep, Reflet shortly following.

 

The two had settled into a new routine, now that they were both in college, wherein Reflet made breakfast in exchange for Robin going out to start their cars, no matter the season. Despite it only being mid October, the winter freeze had already settled over Oregon, forcing Robin to stand in the frigid cold to make sure the cars even started.

 

“I hate this routine, Reffie.” Robin whined, picking over her pancakes. “I don’t even like the breakfast you make.”

 

“You can’t cook for shit though, so it’s either the cars or burning the house down. Your choice, though.” Reflet replied, unbothered by his sister’s quip. Both of the twins were unusually picky in comparison to their mother and older sister, both of whom would try just about anything. “What classes do you have today?”

 

“Just stats, I think. I’ll go marketing afterwards. Milk and more pancake batter, right?” Robin asked, “Oh, wait, we need more bread too…”

 

“Add ham to the list, we need meat if we’re gonna make sandwiches.” Reflet didn’t look up, too focused on his phone. “Hey, we know anyone from Ohio?”

 

“Don’t think so, why? You butt dial someone from there?” Robin teased, still picking at her pancakes. “Or did some creep on Grindr hit you up?”

 

“No, I got an email from a prison. It looks like it’s from a script or something but it’s asking if we need any local law enforcement to check on us? Something about a prison break. Or release. It’s not that clear.”

 

“Hold on, lemme ask Aversa.” Robin paused, clearing her voice, before yelling, “AY AVERSA, DO WE KNOW ANYONE IN AN OHIO PRISON?? …. Let’s give her a minute, I think I heard her move around a little. Anyways, lemme see it, maybe you’re just dumb and it’s not as vague as you think.”

 

“Spoken like a true English major.” Reflet commented, handing his phone over.

 

 _To:_ [ _mklefaye@gmail.com_ ](mailto:mlafaye@gmail.com) _,_ [ _ralefaye@reed.edu_ ](mailto:ralafaye@reed.edu) _,_ [ _aolefaye@willamette.edu_ ](mailto:aolafaye@willamette.edu) _,_ [ _rplefaye@reed.edu_ ](mailto:rplafaye@reed.edu)

_From: Grafton Correctional Institution, Grafton County, Ohio_

 

_Lefaye family, GCI is contacting you to inform you of a release of an inmate related to your RO, who was released early morning October 12, 2017. If you feel that you are unsafe, we encourage you to contact local law enforcement. As of October 12, 2017, your RO is still in place and prevents this inmate from contacting you in any way, and prohibits this inmate from being with in 1000 feet of you. Thank you for your time._

 

“This… is weird.” Robin murmurs, “It was definitely a release. Someone related to our, RO, is that like, a restraining order?”

 

“Why… are you yelling… so early in the morning…” Aversa mumbled, stumbling into the kitchen half awake. “It’s… not even seven yet and I’m awake. What do you want?”

 

“Reffie got some email from a prison in Ohio and neither of us know anyone in Ohio, but it’s addressed to all four of us, so we figured maybe you knew what it was about.” Robin explained, pushing her plate of pancakes towards Aversa.

 

“To be fair, I did not consent to the yelling either. Here’s the email,” Reflet added on, passing his phone to Aversa as well. Aversa quietly read through the email, then again, before sighing and rubbing her eyes. “So…. what’s going on?”

 

“It’s our sperm donor who’s being released. That’s why they’re emailing us. _Fuck_. Gimme a minute, I gotta call mom.” Aversa said, before leaving the table in favor of the living room.

 

“Oh. That. Makes a lot of sense, actually.” Reflet says, breaking the silence Aversa left them to. “Wow. It’s been, what, ten years?”

 

“Yep,” Robin replies, emphasizing the pop. “Jesus. This is not how I wanted today to start. First shitty pancakes, now this?”

 

“Hey, don’t bring my pancakes into this, it’s not my fault you don’t like cinnamon.” Reflet snaps, before sighing, “But I get what you mean. How is this gonna go down? Didn’t Mom say he got locked up for beating the shit out of us?”

 

“Yeah, but I don’t remember a lot of it. Do you think he’ll try to find us? I mean, they’re not gonna tell him where we are, right?”

 

“They won’t,” Aversa said, standing in the doorway. “Just got off the phone with Mom, she’ll be home in an hour. She told me to tell you to email your teachers for today, cause we’re apparently taking a trip down to the police station today.”

 

“Oh damn. This is like, for real then, right?” Robin asks, a little taken aback when Aversa snorts. “What? It’s not like I remember the guy.”

 

“You should, you’re the one that actually got us out of that hell hole.” Aversa replies, before starting on Robin’s leftovers. “In like, second grade, you wrote something about our family for school, and I guess you wrote about how he was mean to all of us and hurt us? Which got DCFS involved, and here we are.”

 

“Really? I don’t remember any of that…” Reflet murmured into his cup, wishing the orange juice was something a little stronger - it was probably going to be that kind of day.

 

“You two were only eight at the time, and Mom made sure you didn’t have to testify more than once at the trial. I was 12, though, so I guess I remember more of it. Try not to, though, those lawyers were fucking awful.” Aversa said, pointing at Reflet with her fork. “Mom probably knows more about him than I do, though, so ask her questions, not me.”

 

“Aww, that’s no fun. We wanna know, or, we should know if he might come after us. Come on, don’t be mean, Vee.” Robin teased, playing her calling card: old nicknames.

 

“Robin please don’t bring out the old nicknames I am too tired for this, Reflet, don’t you start either-” Aversa warned, giving her younger siblings a look.

 

“Aww, but Vee,” Reflet said, joining in on the fun, “Mom probably won’t tell us, you know how she is, come on Vee, pleeeeeeeeeeease?”

 

“If you stop whining and make me another batch of pancakes, I will consider telling you more. Fair warning though, it’s not all nice stuff.” Aversa caved, ruffling Reflet’s hair. “Get to it, pancake boy.”

 

✧✧✧

 

Chrom leaves home early in the morning, before the sun has broke and wakes his sisters to say goodbye. The truck he’s managed to buy is a beat to hell 2000 Ford F150, with only one row of seats and strange marks on the side and a flatbed, and he lovingly names the absolute wreck of a car ‘Gladys’, and goes about his day. His mother packed him a lunch, like she once did when he was in elementary school, and Lissa’s ensured that she can get a prank or two in during his journey by stuffing fake frogs into his duffel bag, squished in between shirts.

 

It’s the thought that counts, Emmeryn had whispered to him, when she confesses that she caught Lissa red handed.

 

Like any other day, though, Chrom stops by all his friends’ houses, to see if anyone’s willing to take him up on the offer of a road trip. No one bites except for Gaius, who has literally nothing to do ever.

 

“So, where we headed Blue?” He asks, standing outside the gate of his house, almost as if he had been waiting for Chrom. “Vegas, Atlantic City, Miami?”

 

“What’s in Miami?” Chrom asks, even though he’s pretty sure he doesn’t want to know the answer.

 

“Certain death.” Gaius says, smile plastered on his face.

 

“Well, I imagine we’ll get to Miami at some point, Vegas and Atlantic City too, but I figured we headed north first - Oregon and Washington probably have something you’ll like.” Chrom says, unlocking the car door and motioning for Gaius to get in. Gaius is smiling far too wide to be up to any good.

 

“Bro, you gotta let me get some weed when we’re up there, _you know those hippie fucks have some_ , also what’s with the frog in your bag.”

 

✧✧✧

 

“When I was pregnant with you two,” Moira begins, drawing a deep breath before continuing, “Aversa told me for the first time that she wanted to be a girl when she was bigger. Your father, Validar, didn’t and still doesn’t like that Aversa is trans. I never thought he was capable of doing something like this, but he started beating Aversa. And me.”

 

“Wait, while you were still pregnant with us?” Robin interrupted, a disgusted look on her face.

 

“Yes. I was in the ER twice with broken bones while I was pregnant with you. It subsided for a while after you two were born, I think because Reflet was a boy. But it picked back up again when he caught Aversa playing with some of my makeup. He started to hit you both too,” Moira paused, sniffling, “when you were three. Allah, he hit you so hard I thought you would die, Reffie. You were in the hospital for days, and they almost took you away. I should’ve let them.”

 

“Mom… It wasn’t your fault.” Reflet sighs, reaching across the kitchen table to put his hand over hers. “You have to know that.”

 

“I know it wasn’t, but I know I could’ve done more to protect you. He made me take care of your wounds after that, so the hospital wouldn’t call a social worker. We only went to urgent care clinics, and if something wasn’t broken, we wouldn’t go anywhere.” Moira pauses again, to take a shaky breath. Reflet rubs his thumb over her hand.

 

“It was always the worst when you were sick. He’d make you go to school anyways, and he’d beat you harder if I picked you up early. He was a horrible man. I should’ve done something sooner, but Robin, you beat me to it. You had some homework assignment, in the second grade, to write about your family. You wrote about how your father would hit us, and how I hated him. Your principal called me and I was so afraid he would tell me either of you had done something, ‘cause I knew your father would beat you for it.” She pauses, letting out a soft sob, “But he showed me your drawing, and introduced me to Bea Diaz, and she drove all four of us to your grandmother’s house so we wouldn’t have to be home when they arrested your father. She was so good to us, she helped us get out.”

 

“And then there was a trial,” Robin surmises, “and he was put in prison.”

 

“Yes. But only for 10 years, because his family had a good lawyer. But we had a good lawyer too.” Moira confirms, “So we got restraining orders, and the judge made them permanent after five years. Legally, he can’t come within a thousand feet of us. But I haven’t spoken to him or his side of the family since then. I don’t know if he’ll try to come after us.”

 

“So, we’re, what, gonna get the police to watch our house or something?” Reflet asks, before peering out the window, “Or are we gonna be the ones to move, in case he already knows where we are?”

 

“I don’t know yet, Reffie. We still have to go down to the station and check in with the chief.”

 

“I already let him know we’re coming by, Mom” Aversa says, leaning against her mother. “He says he’s expecting us.”

 

“Good. Let’s get this over with,” Moira says, sounding more confident than she looked. The children shared a knowing look, in the way any siblings would, telling themselves; be stronger than you are for now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> those emails in the first section are fake and i made them up on a whim, the emails use their first and middle name initials (and im basing this purely off of how my school makes their student emails). in order, it's: moira kimberly, reflet alistair, aversa odette, and robin penelope. idk that doesnt really matter tho. also reed and willamette colleges are real places and idk what their student emails actually look like. 
> 
> dont sue me im broke.


	3. Chapter 3

There is, frankly, not a whole lot to do in the bumfuck middle of nowhere, Oregon. Gaius is driving, letting Chrom rest for awhile, roughly tapping his fingers along to some shitty pop song while looking for something to do. Portland was supposed to be a lot more exciting than a bunch of tired college kids, slumping along with coffee and art portfolios in hand. 

 

“Hey, Blue, I’m hungry,” Gaius declares, nudging Chrom awake. “Let’s find some cheap eats before I get hungry enough to eat that frog your sister packed.”

 

“Mmnnf.” Chrom grumbles, barely on the cusp of lucidity. “Gotta have coffee.”

 

“Sure thing, Blue.”

 

✧✧✧

 

“Shit. So we’re really doing this? Up and leaving?” Robin asked, staring into her cup. The Lefaye family frequented Nina’s Diner, a hole in the wall place with more plants than employees, where they now sat, struggling to devise a plan. The local police had advised them to move, anywhere, before giving them each his contact information. 

 

“It may be best for you to split up, but I’ll leave that up to you. Godspeed.” He had said, a mock salute and half smile, before returning to his files and pressing cases. 

 

“We have to,” Reflet said, his own coffee in hand. “You heard the guy, he thinks we should get outta dodge.”

 

“That may be so,” Moira exhaled, exhaustion clear on her face, “but I’m hesitant to leave you three, especially at a time like this. I know you’re all adults, but you’re still my babies.”

 

“I know, Mom, but we’ll be fine. I’ll call in a favor with a friend down in Cali, she’ll let me bunk with her until this is all over. I’m sure the twins can hole up at Tharja’s place if need be.” Aversa commented, absentmindedly swirling her drink.

 

Moira hums, as if she’s pondering the possibilities. They’re quiet as traffic in the diner picks up, doors swinging open and closed with more frequency. 

 

“Okay,” Robin whispers to Reflet, nudging him out of thought, “I know we’re doing a serious thing right now but the cutest guy I have ever seen just walked in, do you see him? The blue one.”

 

“Uhhh,” He delays, searching the surprising crowd, before finding Robin’s target “Oh, him? By the window?”

 

“Yeah, just look at him!” Robin is more enthused about this mystery man than Reflet is. There’s not a whole lot to look at, just a tired guy with blue hair, chatting with what he assumes is a friend. 

“Please tell me you’re not talking about boys at such a serious time.” Aversa deadpans, startling the twins out of their hushed conversation. The guilt is clear on their faces, so like any older sibling would do, she turns her head around to search for their target. “Oh, you so are, which one is it?”

 

“Reffie, don’t tell her, I swear-”

 

“It’s the dude with blue hair by the window.”

 

“Reffie!! Why do you always do this to me,” Robin whined, kicking him under the table. Reflet kicked back, and soon enough Aversa got dragged in, a full scale war of feet taking place under the table. Moira smiled, calmly watching on when she normally would’ve scolded them, glad her children could still act their age even when faced with such a threat. 

 

✧✧✧

 

Chrom was barely awake when Gaius returned from the counter, two coffees in hand, grumbling a ‘thanks’ before lapsing back into a drowsy state. Mornings (even though Gaius insisted that 12:40 was  _ not _ morning) were never his favorite. 

 

“So, Blue, I know you’re not that into boys anymore, but if you  _ actually open your damn eyes _ , there’s a cutie over in the other corner.” Gaius poses, nudging Chrom’s leg with his foot when he doesn’t reply. “I got your coffee dude, wake up.”

 

“Mm. Which corner?”

 

“All the way in the back, in front of that tree. You see him?”

 

Sitting in front of the tree (or bush, maybe), there’s a boy that looks about their age with three women - two close to their age, one maybe a little older, and the other perhaps a mother? His hair is white and it clashes in a beautiful way with his dark skin. 

 

“Yeah. He’s cute, but he’s more your type than mine.” Chrom remarks, taking a swift chug of coffee. After years of sleeping through alarms and being late to school, he’s learned to ignore the burn that comes with chugging coffee. The caffeine rush is worth it. “Don’t you have like, a girlfriend though.”

 

“Yeah,” Gaius sighs, returning to his cup. “But you gotta admit, he is something.”

 

“Girlfriend, Gaius.”

 

When the family leaves, - Chrom can assume it’s a family, from the way the boy Gaius has his eye on bumps into one of the girls and she bumps back harder, before being stopped by the older woman - it’s only a few minutes later, and he catches one of the girls’ eyes as they go.

 

She looked sad, he thought, in that brief second. She swiped a lock of hair behind her veil, looking away before walking through the door.

 

✧✧✧

 

“Hey, Mom, do you know where my brush is?” Robin yelled, shoving more pieces of clothing into a backpack. “Mom?!”

 

“Bathroom, Rob!” Moira yelled back, in the midst of packing her own bag. The Lefaye house would be empty by that night, each member going their own direction - Moira to her parents, Aversa to a ‘friend’ in Southern California, and the twins to Tharja’s apartment. “Vee, you got your meds?”

 

“Yeah!”

 

Moira was, as it goes without saying, extremely nervous about leaving her children, even if it meant avoiding Validar. Though she knew that Aversa would be safe, so far away, and that Tharja’s family was more than willing to take in the twins for a while, it still seemed like a risky bid. In the chaos of packing, she manages to unearth a small photo album, holding memories of the twins’ infancy and Aversa’s early childhood. It’s one of the few graces of the day.

 

“You’re sure Tharja’s parents won’t mind you being there for so long? I know you’re both close to her but even now I wouldn’t want to impose, and what if-” Moira was cut off by a swift hug from Reflet, shortening her worried ramble.

 

“We’ll be fine, Mom. You know how her parents are like, they work busy jobs. Besides, it’s not like we don’t know them. We’ll be fine.” Reflet assured her, holding his mother close. There was no certain date where they’d officially be safe, no guarantees of anything - he had no idea when he’d see his mother again. 

 

“Don’t worry Mom, I’ll make sure he doesn’t like, die or anything,” Robin butted in, squishing into Moira’s hold so she could get in on the hug too. “I’m kidding, don’t look so scared.”

 

“Alright. Be safe. Remember to call me or Aversa if you need us. You have everything you need?” Moira asked, pulling away. “And don’t be afraid to call the police.”

 

“We do, Mama. We’ll be safe.” Reflet promised, holding out his pinky to her. She took it, a soft smile on her face.

 

“Alright. We all better get going. I love all three of you so much.” Moira said, tears beginning to pool around her eyes. Goodbyes were always hard, even if it was just dropping them off at school when they were young. 

 

This goodbye was too sour for her taste, though.

 

✧✧✧

 

The rest of their day in Portland is uneventful - Gaius buys some weed off of a scummy looking high school student, Chrom drinks more coffee than he really should, and then the time comes to get back on the road - westward, they decide, towards the barren plains of Idaho and Montana. 

 

It’s on the road peeling off onto the interstate that they happen across a car pulled over, smoke bubbling out from under the hood of the car. Chrom, a decent man whose mother tried to teach him some values, pulls over to help despite not knowing anything about how to fix a car. Gaius is very bitter about the whole thing. 

 

“Hey, you guys alright?” He asks, perhaps a little too loud for the circumstance. The person sitting in the passenger’s side jumps out, as if he didn’t expect anyone to call after him. “Oh, it’s you. From the cafe.”

 

It is, indeed, the boy from the cafe that Gaius had been ogling, and Gaius is suddenly out of the car, more than willing to help. 

 

“Excuse me?” The boy asks, words almost dripping with sarcasm. 

 

“Ah, sorry, I asked if you guys were alright? I saw the smoke and pulled over in case you needed help.” Chrom explains, an embarrassed flush rising on his face. 

 

“Oh!” The boy says, all traces of venom gone, “Please, we are so broken down and neither of us are good with cars.”

 

“I can’t say I’m the best with cars, but I think I know enough to guess as to what’s wrong,” Gaius jumps in, appearing at Chrom’s side, “I’m Gaius, you are?”

 

“Reflet.”

 

“Gaius don’t start-”

 

“Ok this is gonna sound rude but what the fuck kind of name is Reflet?” Gaius asks before Chrom can stop him, Reflet’s guise remaining surprisingly cool - even he himself hadn’t reacted that kindly when Gaius first asked him about his name.

 

“What the fuck kind of name is Gaius in the year of our lord 2017?” Reflet shot back, a small smirk on his face. Gaius seems shocked. Chrom thinks he deserves it.

 

“Touché.”

 

Reflet raps on the car window, yelling at the driver to pop the hood. Whoever's inside yells back, but the hood pops nonetheless. A cloud of black smoke is released, very obviously not a good sign, but Gaius waves it away and does his best to get a look. Chrom stands to the side, watching Gaius and Reflet bicker about something he doesn’t know enough about to add anything to the conversation. Instead, he decides to try and make conversation with the driver.

 

The driver who turns out to be the very pretty but sad girl he saw with the boy earlier. 

 

“Hey,” He says, sheepishly, after the driver rolls down the window, “where are you two headed?”

 

“That’s creepy,” the driver says right as Chrom realizes how  _ wrong  _ it was to ask that to someone he doesn’t know, but she continues with, “but you seem too nice to be creepy, so I  _ guess _ I’ll tell you.”

 

“Ah, I-I’m sorry, I didn’t mean for it to, um, come out like that, I’m-”

“Don’t worry dude, it’s cool. I’ve heard worse. Anyways, me and my brother are heading to a friend’s house - sleepover party, ya~y.” She says, sounding much less enthused than sleepover party goers usually are. “Shit’s weird at home so we’re staying away for a bit.”

 

“I know the feeling. When I was six, my sisters and I had to spend a month at a family friend’s house because my parents were fighting so much,” Chrom says before he can really think about it, “oh wait that’s, oversharing, sorry.”

 

“Well, it could’ve been worse,” The driver says, leaning out the window to whisper, “We’re really only going to our friend’s house because our dad, a now ex-convict, is looking for us.”

 

“Oh,” Chrom says, “Sorry.”

 

“I’m glad we’re not just waiting for him to show up though, if the fucker wants to find us, we might as well give him a chase.” She still seems sad when she smiles up at him, but there’s venom in her words and he knows how fathers can be.

 

“Well, if you really want to give him a chase, a road trip is your best option.” He says, confident, leaning against the driver side door so she doesn’t have to lean halfway out of the car for him to hear over Gaius and Reflet’s bickering. “That’s what I’m doing and it’s working so far.”

 

“Interesting,” she says, as if she’s really considering the option, “that’s certainly a creative way to get away from someone.”

 

“Nice and scenic, too. But the gas station coffee gets old fast.”

 

Their pleasant conversation is cut off by a horrible  _ thunk _ followed by rapid clicking from the car’s engine, suddenly sputtering and dying. The driver makes a disgusted face, before looking back up at Chrom.

 

“Any chance you can give us a ride?” She asks, clearly more than displeased with the current situation. Chrom smiles.

 

“Sure thing - I’m Chrom.”

 

“Robin.”

 

✧✧✧

 

“So, let me get this straight,” Reflet says, pausing and putting a hand to his mouth, “You’re running away from your shitty dad, who wants you to take over the family business.”

 

“Yep.” Chrom says. 

 

“And the only person you bring is your stoner friend.”

 

“Hey, I am  _ not _ a stoner,” Gaius juts in, sounding a little too angry for such a small slight.

 

“Yeah, you kind of are.” Robin comments, hopping up to sit on the hood of Chrom’s truck.

 

“Anyways, you’re roadtripping to get away from your shitty dad, you’re in Oregon ‘cause your stoner buddy wanted weed, and now you’re asking us if we want to go roadtripping with you, because ‘we seem nice’”

 

“Sounds about right.”

 

“Alright, I’m in. Where we headed?” Robin says, flashing a smile at Chrom. Reflet doesn’t seem to care for this.

 

“Robin, that is. The least smart thing we could possibly do right now.” He argues, ignoring Gaius when he murmurs, ‘ _ Aww, he’s cute when he’s angry. Like a little baby bird. _ ’

“You heard Mom earlier, the further we could get the better. There’s a reason Vee’s going to SoCal,” Reflet opens his mouth to argue, but Robin shushes him “Besides, they pulled over and offered to help us, and the stoner even tried to see if he could fix the car.”

 

“For the last time, I am  _ not  _ a stoner, I just enjoy the occasional blunt.” Gaius says, pointing a finger at Robin.

 

“You know what?” Reflet says, pausing to turn and yank a backpack from the car, “Fuck it. If we end up dead in a ditch, I am blaming you, Robin.”

 

“We’re not axe murderers!” Gaius yells, a little louder than necessary. 

 

Yeah, this trip’s off to a great start. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> do you ever write like 3k+ words in less than a day and lowkey die bc i wrote three chapters of this in less than a day and lowkey im dead


End file.
